


Can't you tell the difference ?

by LooIsHere



Category: James Bond (Craig movies), James Bond (Movies), SPECTRE (2015), Skyfall (2012) - Fandom
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, Holly - Freeform, M/M, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2015-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-10 05:19:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5572435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LooIsHere/pseuds/LooIsHere
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Q wasn't really one for traditions, and most of all he hated this 'kiss under the mistletoe' thing. Stupid traditions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Can't you tell the difference ?

**Author's Note:**

> Written between 4 and 5 in the morning.. Hopefully not full of mistakes !  
> 00Q is my little weakness (because I'm SOOOOOOOOO in love with Ben Whishaw. Man I love him.)(And also because Daniel Craig is the only blonde to have my heart.)(Charming, british gentlemen are my weak spot I guess..)  
> Feel free to correct me (I probably need it if there is some mistakes) and enjoy !

 

Q arrived earlier at the MI6's headquarters than any of the other member of the Q branch, as he always did, even on a 24th of December like this day. It was his job to be the first to turn up and the last to leave. The first thing he did was to turn the kettle on and put some water to boil. First things first; he needed some tea. His Q mug was dry on the draining board and he didn't waste any time in pouring the water on his Earl Grey as soon as it boiled.

As he expected when he came back, nobody has arrived in the five minutes he spent away from his desk. He closed the door of his office and woke up both the desktop and laptop, settling himself and soon starting to type lazily while drinking his tea. He realised the cup was empty when he tilted it and nothing came. He made a derogatory grunt toward it and stopped what he was doing. He thought about just slamming it down on the desk, but he knew that wouldn't make it full again, so he rose and exited his office in order to fill it again.

The slight brouhaha that welcomed him made him raise his eyes from the desperately empty cup and he saw that some people finally had the decency to arrive. He looked at his watch. Seven thirty-two. Just about time. He said hello to his minions -or as he should call them, his subordinates- and went to turn the kettle on again.  One or two more were at their desks when he came back and he didn't even greet them. He closed the door again and focused on his codes. He had things to test. He hummed to himself and looked at the curls of steam rise above his mug.

He looked at the screens some more before deciding to see with his min- subordinates if he could grab the marvellous device they drew, designed and built to test its waterproofness. Q took a few quick strides toward one of his co-worker and asked for the beautiful, explosive key ring.

"But sir, we.."

"Give it to me."

"You can n.."

"Give me that key ring now."

The man just nodded and handed him the small box in which was the said key ring. Q took it without a word and headed for the back of the room, where laid some of the 'testing machine' they had in Q branch. Among them was an aquarium. He opened the box and took the device by its ring, letting it swing before his eyes. It had a body shape and the ring was attached between its legs. Stuffed with explosives and a poisoned needle. Double-oh-seven would take the hint. He dropped it in the tank of water and waited for bubbles to appear. Or actually, not to appear. But they did. Q sighed and pushed his glasses up his nose. Of course. He looked at the small key ring lying at the bottom of the aquarium, and spoke loudly to no-one in particular.

"Someone take the bloody key ring out of this aquarium. It is not waterproof. It needs further enhancements."

He left the small box next to the aquarium and went back to his office. At least this testing was over. He thought again about the objet. He could almost laugh, seeing how accurate it was, so suitable for Bond's behaviour.

He cloistered himself in his office for the rest of the morning, only sending a message from one of his computers to another when he needed somebody to refill his cup with tea when it was empty. When he finally got his nose out of the keyboard and cast a glance at his watch, he saw it was past one in the afternoon, yet not a single double-oh agent came to complain about anything. And hopefully, not a single one would show up, and particularly not Bond.

Q went to the kettle himself at two or something and noticed something different about the whole Q branch. He couldn't put his finger on what it was yet, but something had changed. It wasn't his minions; they were still the same and didn't act strangely, but he was sure it wasn't just a feeling. He understood when something made a noise when he entered his den again. He raised his eyes and saw mistletoe taped on the doorframe. He closed the door and sat in his chair, sighing and rubbing his eyes behind his glasses. They had nothing better to do than to hang mistletoe over his door. He frowned. Of maybe they hanged some everywhere in MI6 ?

The quartermaster took control of the CCTV cameras and watched the corridors and main rooms of the building, and for what he could see, only Q branch had mistletoe everywhere. Perfect. Now he could spend the rest of his day out of his office keeping a close eye on everyone and dodging anyone trying to steal a kiss under that stupid mistletoe. Stupid tradition.

Someone knocked at some point, and at first he stood up to open, he liked to do that so he could slam it shut if the person annoyed him, but then froze with the hand on the doorknob. If he got caught under that mistletoe he would have to kiss whoever was behind that door. He came back to sit on his chair hurriedly and yelled to the person to come in. What if it was Tanner ? Worse, what if it was M ? To his relief -or maybe not, depending on what he could want- it was James Bond who appeared in the doorframe. The agent heard the faint rustle and raised his head, smiling slyly at the tiny branch before laying his eyes on Q.

"Bond."

"Q."

"How can I help you ?"

"I found this." The agent took the steps between him and Q's desk and extended his open hand.

"Oh. Your earpiece. How kind of you to give it back to me. You didn't destroy _all_ of your equipment then."

"And it is still working."

"Great." He took it and carelessly put it in a drawer. "Where did you find it ?" He crossed his arms and looked at Bond over his glasses.

"In my suit jacket."

"Perfect. Probably put it there when you cut all the transmissions to have a _private encounter_."

"Probably, indeed."

"Well, thank you 007. Did you need anything else ?"

"No."

"Good bye then."

Q looked into his coding again, waiting for the agent to leave.

"Are you going to leave as late as usual tonight even though we're on Christmas Eve ?"

Q raised an eyebrow without looking at him. "I am."

"Don't you spend it with your family ?"

"Why ?"

"Just asking."

The young man made his most unimpressed face and sighed before finally staring at James.

"No, 007. You can leave my office now."

James shot him a cheeky grin before turning his back to him and leaving the office, letting the door wide open.

"Merry Christmas, Q !"

Q grumbled something for himself and yelled for someone to close his door. And to fill his cup.

Q stretched and closed his stinging eyes several times, casting a glance at his watch. Nine fifty-two. He hummed and leaned back in his chair. Maybe he could leave a bit earlier this evening. From what he could hear, everyone in Q branch already left and he had been alone for at least two hours. Yes, maybe he could leave now. He nodded to himself and took his postbag, that he had left closed, putting it on the desk while he turned off the computers and slipped on his coat. He checked all the computers of the branch a last time and turned all the lights off, ready to exit, when he saw a familiar shadow in the entrance. Four more steps and he would have been under that bloody mistletoe.

"What are you doing here, Bond ?"

"I was waiting for you."

"Were you ?"

"Yes."

"Why were you waiting for me ?"

"You said you weren't going anywhere tonight."

"I never said that."

"Are you going somewhere tonight ?"

"I am not"

"Problem solved."

"What do you want, agent 007 ?"

"How about a walk ?"

"Don't you have anyone to see tonight ?"

"I don't. Do you want to come with me ?"

"Is this a date ?" Q was half-shocked, half-sceptical; he couldn't figure out if Bond was just being rude or totally reckless. And he wanted to rip his knowing grin from his face.

"No. Do you want it to be one ?"

"No."

"Good. Then do you want to go on a walk with me, even if it is not a date ?"

Q sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. All he wanted was a shower and a good night of sleep.

"How about a walk, dinner and then a shower and some sleep ?"

Q's face morphed into a shockingly outraged wince, and Bond understood he didn't mean to say that aloud.

"You can say no if you want."

"No."

"I don't take this as an answer. I will convince you."

"I knew it."

"Seriously though, I really am offering you to spend the evening with me."

"Are you insinuating this is a privilege ?"

Bloody hell, the kid was really trying hard to stay home.

"No. Maybe a bit. Or maybe what I'm insinuating is that, being alone tonight as we both are, it will do no harm."

A mischievous glint shone in James' ice blue eyes and Q found the flaw in his words, which drew a impertinent grin on his lips.

"You really do want this walk with me. What, did your significant other stand you up ?"

Q was disappointed to see that his little barb didn't have much effect on the agent, who only raised an eyebrow, his smile still unbearably there.

"I do. Come on Q, we don't have all the night to book a table."

James turned around and started to walk away without checking if Q would follow him. He knew he would. He held the MI6's door open and smiled even more when Q thanked him. He did follow.

"Not many restaurants are still open at ten."

"Fine ! I can just get home and sleep."

"Q, stop being so negative. I know one."

Q rolled his eyes. He was stuck with this stupid double-oh-seven agent. Of all the agents, it _had_ to be the one he supervised. He sighed. Maybe that wasn't a bad idea after all ?

"Relax Q."

"I am relaxed."

"Perfect."

The young man let Bond guide him through the streets of London and to a small but seemingly pleasant bistro.

"So out of step with you, 007."

"Call me James."

"I'm sorry ?"

"I'm not sure using my ID number is the best you could do out of the office."

Q groaned; he was right, that wasn't very intelligent of him.

"Right."

"Don't you have a name ?"

"Q is fine. Q means nothing for anybody."

"Good."

They entered and sat, a middle aged man coming to take their order soon after, and stared at each other silently for some time. Q had his arms crossed on his chest and was throwing a wary look at James, while the blond still had his casual grin, his eyes darting quick glances everywhere from time to time.

"Relax James."

The blue eyes looked right into Q's green ones. The brat was proud of himself. That made James snort and shake his head. They didn't talk much while they ate, Bond looking at Q with the urge to laugh at his stiff moves and disapproving glances.

"And I'm the one who should relax, you say ?" The agent declared, rolling his shoulders easily.

"Shut up Bond."

James paid, embarrassing Q, and said they would go for this walk now. The streets were rather empty, and Q appreciated wandering in the city at night; the lights everywhere and the beautiful decorations made him feel like a child again. Of course he wasn't old, but he still liked -maybe too much- this 'Christmas spirit' that everyone adored.

"Q."

The quartermaster turned on his right and noticed he had been staring at a decoration for some time now, seeing how far James was standing now.

"Sorry."

He came back with a tiny smile on his lips. He was cute when he wasn't frowning and making faces and being angry at him for not bringing back his precious equipment. He looked younger, also. He called him again and extended his arm for him to take, which he did without any hesitation. James put his own hand back in the pocket of his coat, securing Q's hold on his arm with the same move. It was fun how Q didn't seem embarrassed at all of being hanging on his arm.

"I should have taken a scarf." James looked down at Q.

"Yeah, I bet you have one to match every of those ugly cardigans of yours."

"Precisely."

"No doubt everyone is afraid of you in Q branch."

"I could choke you to death with one of these scarves, James."

"So you stick to James now ?"

"I will speak with M, and we will send you in a whole where you'll bloody rot for months."

James laughed heartily. Q was really cute. Bond never really took the time to look around him when he wasn't on a mission, because his job was to look everywhere and know everything, and he liked to relax when he was back in London. Or, what he meant by relaxing: doing sports and practising shooting. And drinking. He winced for himself. And maybe having a few one night stands. He wasn't really an example.

"Q."

Their steps had driven them to a place with a huge Christmas tree.

"Bond ?" The agent smirked.

"Look at this."

Q turned his head toward the tree and he stayed there in awe, with his messy hair and his awful cardigan, his glasses too low on his nose and his cheeks a bit red from the cold wind. They stepped closer and they could almost fit under the first branches. James slipped his hand out of his pocket and freed his arm from Q's grasp before calling him yet again.

"What is it ?"

James took Q's face in his gloved hands and bent slightly to put a kiss on his lips. When they parted, the young man looked at him with a shocked expression.

"What are you doing, Bond ?"

The mischievous grin appeared on his face again and his pointed his forefinger up. Q raised his head and saw the tree decoration Bond was pointing.

"This is holly."

"And ?"

"We kiss under the mistletoe."

"Really ?"

"Yes, really."

"So that didn't bother you ? What bothers you is the fact that I kissed you under some holly instead of under some mistletoe ?"

"James, why did you kiss me under that holly ?"

"Why not ?"

"Because this is holly."

"I think I got it."

"There was mistletoe at Q branch."

"And ?"

"You could have kissed me there."

"So you're telling me you're obsessed with mistletoe."

"No James what I'm.." Q sighed. It was too late anyway. "It doesn't matter."

"You wanted me to kiss you earlier ?"

"I'm sorry ?"

"That's what you're trying to say."

"No what I'm trying to say is that you can't just kiss people for no reason. I'm not one of your James Bond girl, God."

"There is a reason."

"Is there ?"

"There is holly on that branch."

Q closed his eyes and breathed slowly. When he opened them, he find himself eyeball to eyeball with James' blue orbs. There was nothing to do anyway. If James Bond  was known for his docility, he would be aware of it.

"You liked it."

"I liked it."

The blond smiled, creating small wrinkles at the corner of his eyes before putting another kiss on Q's lips. This time Q kissed him back, and their kiss became fiercer. The young man wrapped his arms around James' body and was left breathless when they separated.

"How do you like your kiss under the holly ?"

"Better than under the mistletoe."

"Good. Come on now."

Q was fumbling with his keys, his hands trembling, but not from the cold. James was behind him, pulling off his gloves and stuffing them in one of his pocket. The door opened and as soon a Q closed it, the agent pushed him against the door panel and kissed him passionately. Q breathed deeply when James kissed his jaw and nibbled down his neck before he pushed the coat off his own shoulders and one of his hand came to grab the too short blond strands on the back of Bond's head. Q let his own head thump on the door as he leaned it back to clear more space for James to suck and bite and lick at.

"James.." Whispered the quartermaster.

The blond kissed him again before grabbing his hand and starting to walk in the flat.

"Third door, right."

"Good."

He dragged him to the bedroom and kissed him some more before finally helping him take off this hideous cardigan, throwing it himself somewhere in the room, hoping for it to disappear forever. Q then pulled on his tie and loosened it in order to get rid of it too, while James toed off his derby shoes and let his suit jacket slide from his shoulders elegantly. The brown-haired man was starting to unbutton his shirt, but the blonde  snatched his hands and grabbed him by his waist for Q to wrap his legs around him. He then roamed his upper body while taking the last steps to the bed.

"How can you be so skinny ?" He breathed against his collarbone.

"Shut up Bond."

James smirked and made them both fall on the bed.

When Q woke up, a heavy, muscled arm was weighing down on him. He turned a bit and saw that James was awake, his piercing blue eyes open, feeling his smile against the skin of his shoulder.

"Good morning."

"Hmm."

"Merry Christmas."

"Where're my gifts ?"

"I'm your gift."

Q turned on his back and raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. James loved to see this expression on his quartermaster's face. He grinned and kissed him.

"Can you even see me clearly ?"

"Yes. Well, kind of."

The agent chuckled and put a kiss on his temple.

"Where is mine then ?"

"If you can be mine, then I can be yours. If that's how you see gifts."

Q looked like he was sulking, he was frowning again like he always was in his Q branch.

"Don't make that face yet."

"Yet ?"

"I destroyed nothing."

Q rolled his eyes. Obviously.

"James ?"

"Q ?"

He thought about it just now.

"Can't you tell the difference ?"

"What do you mean ?"

"Between holly and mistletoe."

"I know which one is which. Holly is the spiky thing with red berries which I kissed you under yesterday, and mistletoe is round and has white berries. Like it's hanged in Q branch."

"Then why did you kiss me under the holly ?"

"I needed a reason."

James stoop up and started to walk, fully naked, to the corridor and kitchen.

"James I have neighbours."

"And ?" He turned around, and Q had a quick down-up glance.

"You're walking starkers in my flat."

"Then I hope grandma is at the window."

He winked and walked down the corridor, to the pleasure of Q who got an eyeful of his backside.

"And James ?" He yelled, turning on his side, ready to sleep a bit more.

"What ?" Came the answer from the kitchen.

"Merry Christmas to you too."


End file.
